The Hunt for the Lost Symbols
by lightblue-Nymphadora
Summary: QW14. Quinn gets a little more than she planned for when she gets recruited to help rich explorer (and rumored Sky Pirate) Santana Lopez in an expedition. Quinntana. Steampunk AU.
1. The Professor and the Pirate

_**LbN: Quinntana Week, day five. Prompt - AU.**_

The end of the term was always a bit shaky. Evaluations were coming in; grades were going out. People were leaving, and/or getting hired. The students you'd grown to love were leaving for bigger and better things.

"Airship training?" Professor Fabray asked, incredulity dripping from her voice.

The young woman across from her smiled brightly. "Yes, Professor."

"Tina, you've had me for six years running now," the blonde said. "You can call me Quinn."

"It still feels weird, Professor. I'll probably never break the habit."

Quinn grinned as the bell tower rang out the hour. "Well, if anyone can do it, you can. You definitely have the right disposition."

"Thanks...er...I think."

"It was a compliment, don't worry."

"I have to go now," Tina said as the last of the bell's tolls died away. "All of the recruits are going to dinner before we have to leave for the academy."

"Best of luck, Tina. I know you'll do great things."

The young woman gave her a shy smile, reminiscent of the first day she'd stepped onto campus. "Thanks Prof - Quinn."

Quinn got back to her papers after the girl left. She always felt a pang when her favorites graduated. This year even more so, since she'd seen four of her favorites move on to greater things. A Professor at the kingdoms premier college, Aelox University, she'd had a selective group of student in independent study tracks with her for the past eight years. This last group had been one of her favorites. She was the head of the Thaumaturgical Linguistics department, and attracted a diverse cohort of students each year. This past year, the group of four that had included Tina had been interested in Necromatic Accoustics - the reverberation from the dead, and how you could hear them in some places better than others. This had meant quite a bit of study of ancient magical languages with Professor Fabray. Currently, she was writing letters of recommendation for two of the four, who were trying to get their study funded so they could pursue further research.

The speaking tube made the strangled goose noise that indicated a call coming through from the department lobby.

"Fabray," Quinn answered, pulling the little bronze mouthpiece toward her.

"_Dr. Fabray, there is a visitor here to see you. Er…."_

Quinn sighed. The new student worker at the desk was having a real tough time getting the hang of "important" versus "take a message". "Yes, Evanna?"

"_It's an important visitor."_

That got Quinn's attention. One thing Evanna usually wasn't, was sparing with details. If she was holding back, that meant it was really important. "They're right there, aren't they?"

"_Yes."_

"And they can hear your answers."

"_Very much so, Dr. Fabray."_

"Okay, then just answer yes or no. Is it any of the royal family?"

"_No."_

"Is it the Archchancellor of the College?"

"_No."_

"Ah, that must mean it's some high-up from society, yes?"

"_That's extremely correct, Dr. Fabray."_

"Right. Send them up."

"_Thank you, Dr. Fabray," _Evanna said, clearly relieved.

There was a click as the speaking tube disconnected. Quinn replaced hers on the wall and waited for the mystery visitor. Sealing the two letters, she dropped them down the mail chute and let out a sigh. Any time bigwigs came to see her, it was usually something to the effect of "Hi, I found my granddaddy's diary in the attic, could you decipher it?" And usually it wasn't the ancient language of dragons the person had predicted (and hoped for, so they could sell it to the New Chronology House for a small fortune), but simply messy handwriting.

The floorboards in the hall creaked slightly as the visitor approached. A moment later, a tan woman with pitch black hair stood in the doorway. She was dressed in normal Airship attire, but with a few touches here and there that gave off the impression of extreme wealth.

"Dr. Fabray," she said, striding forward. "I'm -"

"I know who you are," Quinn said cooly. "Santana Lopez. Daughter of a wealthy Airship designer, niece to the Baron and Baroness of Aelox. Heir to the Laithenghast Airship empire, and rumor has it, a Sky Pirate."

Santana grinned. "Well, they did say you were thorough. Yes to all, but the last is exaggerated."

"What can I help you with?"

"I had the opportunity to do some...traveling over the past month. I came into possession of a certain book - don't look at me like that. I bought it, fairly," she added, seeing Quinn's face turn stormy. "I was visiting the next kingdom over - Aradine - and I spent an entire day at their bazaar. Anyway, I got this book, and it's in a language I've never seen before. It's...an important book. The man who sold it didn't know what he had."

"What's so important about it?" Quinn asked. The other woman's self-important smile was starting to grate on her nerves.

Santana shook her head. "Can't tell you that just yet. If you agree to work with me, however, I'll let you keep it. I understand you collect rare works."

"You just need me to translate the book?"

"That's the first bit. I also have a feeling that there will be more things for you to translate - I think the book is a map of sorts. The full job, I hope, will take about a month. There would be travel involved, but I'm willing to provide decent compensation."

"I'll pass."

Santana's grin widened. "Really? Is it because of the pirate thing? Because I told you, that was exaggerated. True, I have my own Airship, and true it's not for the purposes of protecting the realm. But I don't loot, pillage, or plunder. I'm an explorer. Do you think, with how famous I am, that King Brad would let me live if I was a pirate?"

Quinn glared at her for a moment. "If this isn't something illegal, then why can't you just tell me what's going on?"

"I have a crew of fifteen men. For this, I'm only taking my two closest. I don't want word getting out before I've even got started. They're already jealous." She took the small book out of her bag, and passed it across Quinn's desk. "Think on it overnight. I'll see you tomorrow." Without another word, she swept from the room. It should be impossible to sweep, especially regally, when one does not have on a long cloak or dress, but Santana managed it.

Quinn scowled after her for a long moment. She should throw the book out, or tuck it away until the woman came back for it. She shouldn't get mixed up in whatever Santana was planning. She knew that, but she looked down at the book and knew that she was hooked. The script was bold, blocks and strikes. It immediately struck her as some sort of Elvish, but that couldn't be right because of the sentence structure. The looked at the book again. Three words. The first letter looked like an arrow pointing up, the second looked like an H with two bars across. The third looked like an M written by the world showiest calligraphist. She took a stab in the dark, guessing it translated to the word "THE" in her language. Pulling a scrap of parchment to her, she took out her pen and began the translation.

* * *

"Dr. Fabray? Dr. Fabray!"

Quinn jerked awake, parchment slightly stuck to her face. "Hrrm, what?"

"You slept here last night, Professor," Evanna said, gently removing the paper from her face and stacking it neatly with the others. "Another one of your projects?"

"Yes, an unexpected one."

"I've brought up your coffee - extra large today," Evanna said. "And a warm towel. The Dean is on his way over from the Cannterton campus. He'll be here in an hour. And there's a woman downstairs who says she wants to see you. She said she's happy to wait until you've woken up fully."

Quinn groaned. "Thank you, Evanna. Send her up."

Santana was in the room again in another five minutes, eating a slice of coffee cake. She offered one to Quinn. "I had a feeling you'd be intrigued enough to pull an all-nighter. I thought the least I could do was to bring breakfast."

"I looked through the book," Quinn said without preamble, though she did accept the pastry. "It's some sort of old Mage script - similar to the Aeloxian First Elvish, but -"

"Whoa, wait. Isn't that thousands of years old?"

"Seven thousand, three hundred and five, precisely," Quinn said, waving a hand. A few ancient, crumbling tomes floated just above the desk and opened. "And you were right, it is a sort of map - or directions, I guess would be more accurate. But it's like…."

"Yes?"

"Did you ever play 'Find the Prince'? when you were small?"

"That's the game where one of the children hides and the others get clues to where they are, right?"

"Right. Normally, the clues lead to other ones. That's what this book is. It's a history of a sect of Magi, and they didn't want to make it too easy for anyone to find…."

"Do continue," Santana said.

"There's some kind of treasure," Quinn said stonily. "But you already knew that."

"I had a hunch. So...are these the transla -" Santana pulled her hand back. She'd been reaching for the stack of papers, but Quinn had slammed her hand down on it.

"I haven't agreed to help you."

"Fine," Santana said, losing her look of smug detachment for the first time since they'd met. "What will it take to get you to say yes? This is a great opportunity for you!"

"You mean for you."

The sly grin came back. "For me? I'm in this for the chance to explore, and possibly line my pocketbook with something shiny. For you? This could be huge for your career. Don't tell me you had a better idea lined up for the summer. Better than researching a dead, nearly forgotten language? You want to do this. You may not like me, yet, but you have to admit I've just handed you a golden apple."

Quinn looked from her and back down to the translations. "They're rough. I'll need to study more."

"Can we get started with them?"

"Yes."

"Then we leave on the first day of summer. In the morning, just after breakfast. Pack only essentials."

"But that's only two days away!"

"Then I suggest you pack quickly," Santana said, winking. "We'll leave from the main Airship dock, across from the palace. I look forward to working with you, Dr. Fabray."

Quinn stood and paced the room once she'd gone. She stopped in front of the window, looking out over the city. The bell jar - a six story glass structure full of gears and purple lightning - was working overtime to produce enough energy for the coming festival. She turned away and started pulling her travel folders out.


	2. The Crimson Shadow

The first day of summer, known as Spryte Eve, dawned clear and humid. From her apartment window, Quinn could see the fisherman coming in from an early-morning session, nets full and flopping. The smells of the myriad bakeries came wafting up, and not for the first time she wondered how on earth she wasn't 800 pounds and counting. She rinsed her coffee cup and checked her watch again. It was about time.

The walk to the coach station took about ten minutes, since she stopped for a bun on the way. When she got there, she was surprised to hear her name called out. A footman took her bags and rushed to load them onto the carriage at the front. At the front of the line was a rotund, stern-looking butler who bowed and held one of the coaches' doors open for her. She'd just glimpsed the coat of arms on the side before stepping into the plush, perfumed darkness.

Across from her was an older woman who, while she didn't resemble Santana, had the same easy, self-assured smirk. "Good morning, Doctor."

Quinn, still holding her half-eaten breakfast bun, suddenly felt very alone. She thought hard about the crest she'd seen. "Good morning, er, Madame."

"You may call me Regina. I usually don't extend that offer right off the bat, but I do believe you'll be around for a while."

"I'm sorry, Madame, I'm not sure what -"

"I, as you know, am Santana's aunt. I'm also extremely rich, and the second most powerful woman in the kingdom. That means, for all the fearsome rumors and mystique surrounding her, Santana does not get to go gallivanting off to parts unknown without my knowledge. Especially when she's taking someone new along."

"So...this is my interrogation?"

"Oh no, sweet girl. I already know all about you," she said. She waved her hand and a thin folder and some glasses appeared in a puff of purple smoke. "Educated at the Aelox School for the Gifted. A doctorate by the time you were 24, no family or romantic attachments at the moment. A sorceress, level 20 - that's impressive - with a particular gift for Summoning and magical languages." She shut the file with a snap, and it disappeared. Lowering her glasses down around her neck, she leaned back against the seat as the coach rumbled along. "I set great store by my niece. She is ambitious and adventurous and headstrong - and she will be great at running the Airship empire one day. But for now, she doesn't have to. For now, she can play to her heart's content. It's my job to make sure she makes it back from each of her...excursions. How much do you know about this text you're studying?"

Quinn - stunned into silence - shook herself a bit before answering. "Not much, your grace."

"Then remember to cast protective spells before you...do whatever it is you'll be doing. I imagine you haven't had much practice with this kind of large scale protective spell, so here." Another flash of purple smoke, and a small book floated toward Quinn.

She took it with the hand not occupied with a pastry. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, lovely. Just make sure my niece comes back whole. Ah, I do believe we're here."

The coach had pulled to a stop in front of the landing pad. The baroness gave Quinn another nod, dismissing her from the coach.

Her bags were already on the sidewalk when she stepped down. She tossed the wrapper from her breakfast into the trash barrel, and walked up the long stairs to the ships. It wasn't hard to find the ones that belonged to Santana. Most were warships, big and bulky. Both of hers were trimmed down - sleek.

"Ahoy! You must be Quinn!" a muscular black man called from the deck of the smaller one. "I'm Matt. One moment, and I'll lower the ladder. Drop your things on the lift, there."

There was a small metal cage connected to a pulley near where the ladder dropped. It already had a few bags inside. Quinn added hers, and climbed up past the red paint that named the ship - The Crimson Shadow. .

"Good to have you here, Doctor," Santana said when Matt had helped the blonde over the side. "We'll be leaving in a few moments. Just have to get the all-clear from sky traffic. You brought the book and papers?"

"Yes," Quinn said, quirking an eyebrow.

Santana laughed. "Sorry, but ever since Blaine left our magic compass in The River Kingdom, I always check."

"I was one time!" Another man was climbing up from below deck. He tossed his shaggy black hair from his face and smiled at Quinn. "Blaine Anderson," he said, nodding to her. "We just got the all clear from sky traffic, if we want to get under way."

**"****Come on up, Doctor," Santana said, climbing to the wheel of the ship. "I've got the best seat in the house."**


	3. The Hunt

Steam poured from the metal pipes at the back of the ship as they soared through the air over the islands. Quinn was in her quarters, pouring over the text. She had a good grasp of reading it, even if her speaking skills were still rough. She rubbed her eyes and stood up, walking around the small desk to take a look at the map of the world. Laid out, it was a series of islands that rather resembled a clock, with three extra islands - one right in the center, one to the east of "nine o'clock" and one northwest of "six o'clock". So far, they'd gone to five of fifteen islands, and had discovered a few more clues. As far as she could tell, this wouldn't be a world tour. But she knew that their journey wasn't over yet. There were two more clues - that she knew of. Gods only knew what was in store for them when they reached the mountains.

"Quinn?"

"Evening, Captain."

Santana sauntered in, setting a tiny shot of espresso down on the desk. "You shouldn't spend too much time down here. You'll go mad."

"I'm used to staying shut in for long periods of time," Quinn told her, downing the bitter liquid.

"Come on up for a moment," Santana insisted. "We're heading into the airspace over Croilux - you don't want to miss it."

"Really? Why?" Quinn asked as she followed Santana up onto the deck.

Blaine gave them a big grin and a wave as he steered. "Just starting the descent," he called.

"Wow," Quinn said, at a loss for anything more philosophic.

The sky around them was a dazzling mixture of pinks and oranges - nearly picture perfect, if artists ever found a way to capture the twilight descent of the astral dust. It was a worldwide source of energy, astral dust, collected in the evenings when the stars began to appear in the sky. Already, a few airships were traveling up to begin their nightly task of storing it in glass cannisters the size of suitcases. The glittering world around them looked like the top of a frosted cupcake.

"Have you been here before?" Santana asked, leaning on the railing next to Quinn.

"Once," Quinn said. "On a research grant. I stayed just there, at the University." She pointed out a large green tower toward the east.

"What was it like?"

"The Masters were old and didn't care much what I did. I made a lot of friends and we ended up just barely passing the course," Quinn told her, grinning. "Some of the best spirits in the world here, and if you can tolerate alcohol well, that tends to get in the way of your studies."

Santana laughed. "You'll have to prove it to me. We'll be staying overnight in town before heading to the mountains tomorrow."

"Well, you said the whole pirate thing was exaggerated," Quinn said with small smile. "How am I supposed to trust that you can handle your alcohol?"

"I may not be a pirate, but other life professions have taught me my way around a booze hall," Santana informed her, winking. "You just show me where - I promise I can hold my own."

"No boozing tonight, unfortunately," Matt said, walking over to them. "Unless there's a tavern attached to our inn. There's a forecast of rain and we need to start early to get to the mountains before noon."

Santana groaned like the world was collapsing around her, and Quinn laughed.

"Fine, but you owe me a round when we find what we're looking for," she told the blonde.

"It's a date."

Santana smirked at her before striding over to talk to Blaine.

"She's going to hold you to that," Matt said, grinning at her.

"What? The alcohol? That's fine. I'm sure we'll all be up for a drink or three when this is over."

"That too, but I meant the part about it being a date."

Quinn gaped at him. Then she turned to look at Santana, who was at the wheel again. "No," she said to Matt. "Seriously?" And she hoped the tiny sparkle of hope wasn't evident in her voice.

"Oh definitely."

"I bet she has no trouble in that department," Quinn said, trying not to get her hopes up.

"Eh...couldn't say. She hasn't been with anyone in a long time. I've known her most of her life, you see? She loves hard, but she doesn't trust easily."

Quinn nodded, glancing back at the older woman.

"Water landing!" Santana called happily. "Everybody hold on to something, these can get bumpy."

Quinn grabbed onto the railing, and onto Matt's shirt with her other hand, and watched breathlessly the last bit of their descent. The landing was indeed bumpy, but she congratulated herself on the fact that she didn't fall over.

There was a loud hiss and a jolt as Santana gave the ship a bit more steam and they shot toward the harbor.

* * *

The Croilux Mountain Range loomed just ahead of them. Over supper the night before, they'd gone over all of the plans - the language that Quinn was rapidly getting the hang of (if you didn't count speaking skills, that is), the plan for exploring the set of five caves, and what they would do if they ended up waking a sleeping dragon or some other such catastrophe befell them.

But now - now that they were here - Quinn was suddenly nervous. The other clues had been found in secluded places, but never anywhere this...wild. They'd flown through large stretches of jungle before landing on a plateau, and Quinn was struck with how much work this just might be. No X Marks the Spot digging anymore - now they really were exploring.

"You ready?" Santana asked.

"As I'll ever be," Quinn said.

The ground was muddy and uneven under their feet as they trudged across the narrow isthmus to the mouth of one of the lower mountain caves. They watched as Matt and Blaine set off into the sky once more - the boys would start at the other side of the range, in the shallow sea caves.

They'd brought torches, but they didn't light them at first. The sun was shining directly into the cave, making the walls glitter slightly. Quinn took out her small notebook and spoke a few words. The runes appeared in the air, glowing. They dissolved into wisps a moment later, leading the way forward.

"Well done," Santana said, not even trying to hide the impressed tone in her voice. "You're getting the hang of that."

"Trying, at least. The next one might take me a while. Hopefully I taught Matt well enough."

"I'm sure they'll be fine. Let's go."

Santana led the way, and they followed the faint purple trail into the cave. Quinn flicked the switch on her torch and looked at the walls. The last clue had mentioned them, but she wasn't sure she was translating it at all correctly. The rough, glittering rocks didn't look special or odd in any way, but maybe there was something she was missing.

They were deep into the heart of the cave before they came upon their first problem.

"Bollocks," Santana grumbled, setting her pack down and shining a light into the rocky chasm. The beam reflected off of something. "I think there's some sort of water down there. Maybe a river, but it's too far down to tell."

"The trail leads down there. You don't think they dumped it in a lake, do you?" Quinn asked, panicked.

"No...I see dry land, I think. Right, help me get the repelling equipment out."

Quinn threw up four balls of light.

"Wait, why are we bothering with the torches if you can do that?" Santana asked.

"Magic is...weird. You'd think light spells wouldn't take too much energy, but they do. I don't want to pass out on you," she added, smiling.

In another ten minutes, they were ready to go. Santana double checked their ropes as the sat on the lip of the cliff. Quinn took her hand.

"_Hairh fuwasr fsudasd ir_," she muttered.

"That… Old Tinuan?" Santana asked.

"Close. High Tinuan," Quinn said as a soft purple glow enveloped them. "Old Tinuan uses "oxa" instead of "ir"."

"Got it," Santana nodded.

Quinn was interested to note that there wasn't even a hint of sarcasm in the older woman's voice. She seemed genuinely interested. "Um...okay, the protection spell took hold. We can go now."

They lowered themselves down about twenty feet, the orbs of light following their descent. When they hit the sandy floor of the cave's lower level, they were looking up at what was, essentially, a basin in the middle of the pit. It stood only a few inches over their heads. Quinn reached up, but Santana grabbed her wrist gently.

"If there's one thing I've learned on these expeditions," she said. "It's to never be the first to stick your hand in a viscous material."

Quinn chuckled nervously. "Right. Let's go."

"Do you like working for the university?" Santana asked quietly.

"I do. The students are great, and the higher-ups let me get on with whatever research I want to do."

"Hmmm…." Santana hummed.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. Just a...thought. I think we're going to have to climb over this bit."

Quinn looked up at the wall of rocks in front of them. "There's an opening, but it's quite small."

Santana took a small round disc out of her pack and wound the gear on its face for a moment. Then she reached back and chucked it as hard as she could up and through the hole. There was a series of small pops, and then a bright flash of blue. It illuminated the rocks from the other side so they could see better.

"It won't last long," Santana said. "Let's go."

Quinn put another protective spell on the pair of them, and followed Santana. She was pretty athletic, for someone who lurked in libraries for a living. She made it a point to go to the university's gymnasium each morning and having a go at the obstacle course, and twice a week she had sparring matches after class. But between using her magic and the physical exertion, she was completely out of breath when she lowered herself to the ground on the other side.

"Easy," Santana said, steering her to a wall. "Sit down. We'll rest for a while."

"But, we're on a schedule," Quinn said, panting.

"We have all day. Here." She handed Quinn a water bottle and a piece of dried fruit.

"Thanks," she said, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach when Santana rubbed her back.

"Hey, look at this," Santana said after a quiet moment, standing up. She pointed to the purple trail, which curved sharply a few feet ahead of them and led into a solid wall.

"That must be it. I'm okay," she added, seeing Santana's look of concern.

"You sure? I don't know much about magic, but I know it's physical. And we don't exactly know what we're getting into here."

"I'm okay. I'll just take a moment to make sure I'm reading this right. Yeah, I've got it. Stand back a bit."

Santana did so, and the purple light of the protection spell lit them once more. She watch Quinn speak to the wall a few times. Nothing happened.

Quinn tried again, putting inflection on different syllables. Still nothing. She huffed impatiently and slapped her hand against the wall. She didn't bother trying to do the spell in the specific sect language, but switched to the common magical language used throughout their world. "_E verr sraa ragor sraekark_!"

"I will thee, reveal thyself," Santana translated, a little awed as purple and blue cracks fanned out from Quinn's hand.

The rock was hot where she was touching it, but she didn't pull away. She tried again in the sect's language. "_Grusairuir dsaerisa dha wahdhail ula raacer susseira_."

The ground shook. The rock began to crumble away, and Quinn scrambled back. Rocks from the wall they'd climbed over began to tumble, and Quinn put up a barrier to protect herself and Santana. The wall she'd touched looked as though it were **disintegrating**. There, when the dust settled, was a large but ordinary chest. Santana took a step forward, but stopped and looked back at Quinn.

"You've still got the spell on you," the blonde said weakly. "You're safe enough."

Santana didn't go to the chest though. She helped Quinn sit down and stayed next to her. "We've got time. You rest. Well done, though."

"Yes, very well done," said a voice.

Santana was on her feet in an instant, sword drawn. She lowered it in confusion a moment later. "Sebastian?"

A man came through the wall's new, bigger opening, grinning at them. "You didn't think we'd let you snub us on an ancient, wonderful treasure, did you?"

Quinn, through a haze of magical fatigue, saw other men entering the tunnel. One of them tried to grab her, but Santana pushed him away.

"Leave off!" she snapped. "She's tired. And what's this all about, Sebastian?"

"We think it's time you took the backseat," he said, still smiling. "Now, throw your sword to the ground, and there'll be no fuss. Otherwise we'll kill you and the blonde beauty here. You may not be a pirate...but I am."

There was a chorus of clattering as some of the men prepared their crossbows.

Santana tossed her sword to the ground, but still stood protectively in front of Quinn.

**"****You two get the chest. The rest of you, grab them," Sebastian said. "Let's get out of here."**


	4. The Pirates

Matt and Blaine had been beaten, and were tied up on Sebastian's ship. The pirates had already hitched the Crimson Shadow to the other airship, and were ready to go by the time the group got back. Santana and Quinn, still bound, were dropped unceremoniously next to the boys.

"Now, obviously we don't want you trying anything stupid," Sebastian said. "That includes any magic. Just sit tight, and if you're good little mice we might just be persuaded to let you go. I'm sure I don't have to draw you a picture of what will happen if you're not so good."

The rest of the pirates were rifling through their things. One was trying to pry open the lid of the chest.

"It's no good, boss," he grunted. "It won't open."

"Probably some magic bullshit," Sebastian grumbled. "Bring the smarty pants to my chambers."

"No, wait -" Santana began, but didn't get any further because one of Sebastian's men kicked her in the stomach.

"You speak when spoken to," he grumbled.

"Right, right," Sebastian said, with a casual wave of the hand. "That's enough. Grab the blonde and you two get the trunk."

Quinn was hoisted to her feet. "It's okay," she said softly, seeing Santana about to protest again. She followed the men out, stumbling a bit as the ship took off back into the sky. She squinted, trying to take in everything about the ship in case they needed to escape.

Sebastian's cabin wasn't like the ones on the Shadow. It was lush and ostentatious - something that screamed "I'm a pirate king! Pay attention to me!" There was a round table at one end with a map on it. Two of the men set the trunk just in front of it, and the one holding Quinn's upper arm sat her in a chair in front of it.

Sebastian sat at on the table, shifting the map a bit. "Go on. Open it."

"I don't know if -"

"You're in no position to be ignorant right now."

"If you'd let me finish," Quinn snapped. "I was going to say I don't know if this is the actual treasure or not. I'll need my notebook to help with the runes - I'm still learning the language."

Sebastian nodded to one of the men, a surly looking pirate with no nose and bright red hair, who left.

Quinn stared at the box, trying to think. This was the treasure - she knew it - but her lie had at least bought her a little time. She said a few words, and the chest glowed bright purple.

"What are you doing?" Sebastian asked, standing suddenly.

"Calm down," she said gently. This guy was an idiot, but a dangerous one. And his men didn't look above a certain measure of violence if they thought she was up to something. Best to keep things respectful. She was probably reasonably safe, so long as they thought she was harmless. "I just had to make sure it was safe. I'm still researching the sect that hid it, and I don't know if they...er… had a dangerous sense of humor, shall we say? I was just checking to make sure it wouldn't explode, or release demon crabs or anything."

Sebastian gave her a long, calculating look, but sat back down.

The red haired pirate came back just a few seconds later, and set the book on Quinn's lap.

Quinn sighed. No wonder Santana had been in charge - this lot didn't have the brains to fill an egg cup. "My hands are tied. Not much I can do like this."

Sebastian took out his knife. "Try anything -"

"I get it."

Once free, Quinn knelt down and examined the box. She flipped through a few pages of the notebook and practiced the words silently. "Okay. I think I've got it. It might take a few tries."

"We've got time," Sebastian said. "Get going."

Quinn chanted in the ancient language for a moment. Nothing happened. this was a surprise, even to her. She tried again, putting the inflection on different parts of the words. This time, a dim blue aura began to surround the box. "It's working," she assured them, before resuming the chant.

The glow brightened and dimmed over and over again to the musical sound of Quinn's voice. The pirates stood, spellbound, until at last the glow faded and they were left in the regular light of the cabin.

Quinn reached out and touched the lock. It clicked, and she stood up and to the side as the pirates clamoured around the open lid. It was full of gold and diamonds. She knew running would be a bad idea. There was no way she could get to the others, get them untied, and arm them in time to overtake the crew. Instead, she studied the map.

"Well, well," Sebastian said, happily. "It looks like you were of some use after all. Tam, take her back with the others. Then hurry back - we have loot to split!"

The red haired pirate grinned in an evil sort of way and grabbed Quinn by the arm again. He half-dragged her down the hall and into the storage chamber where the others were tied. Santana had been gagged as well. He tied Quinn up next to her and took an obscenely long whiff of her hair before leering at them and departing.

"I'm fine," she said, when all eyes turned to her. "Blaine, can you and Matt come any closer? I can heal you a little."

The next few minutes were spent shuffling around the post they were tied to. Quinn somehow ended up in Santana's lap, blushing furiously as she healed Matt and Blaine. Santana mumbled something behind her gag that sounded suspiciously like "At least let me buy you dinner first."

"I know where we're going," Quinn said quietly, after the were in sitting positions again."

"Where?" Blaine asked.

"The island of Swinthana."

"Of course," Matt grumbled. "It's mostly unpopulated, except for the northeastern shore. It's a great place to lay low."

"It's also where my students did most of their research on Necromatic Accoustics," Quinn whispered.

"What? What does that mean?" Matt asked.

"It means, I know a way out of this."


	5. The Island

**The four prisoners were jostled awake quite some time later. By now, night had fallen, and Quinn could just see the line of palm trees through the window. She blinked a few times as the ship rocked in the waves. Through the closed door to their cabin, she could hear a conversation taking place. **

**"****...put 'em to work."**

**"****No. I don't trust Santana. We'll leave them in there until we get camp set up and the loot split up. Get Petey down here on guard." **

**"****Which one's Petey?" Quinn whispered to Blaine. **

**"****The one who looks like a gorilla on drugs," he answered quietly. "Don't look him in the eye. And don't say anything about how bad he smells. I've seen him lay out a three-hundred pound Guard with one blow."**

**Quinn was silent as the man lumbered into their cabin. Her mind worked fast - they were here at night, which was an advantage. Unfortunately, she couldn't do anything with her hands tied and Jumbo over there glowering at them. **

**It was quite a long time before anything happened. By the sounds of it, the pirates were setting up some sort of camp. But the next sounds from the ship weren't good - the sound of a lot of angry men coming below deck at speed made Quinn hold her breath. She knew what had happened, but this was their only way out. Hopefully they didn't kill first and ask questions later….**

**Sebastian burst into the room, nearly braining Petey as he did so. **

**"****Bring them up," he growled, personally untying Quinn himself. He hauled her up, none too gently, and dragged her through the ship.**

**They stumbled down the gangway to the sandy beach and through the white tents the pirates had erected. Near the glowing fire sat the chest. It was open, but no longer displayed the golden diamonds from earlier. Sebastian threw her down in front of it. **

**"****Look!" he snarled. **

**Quinn struggled into an upright position and peered into the box. She would've laughed, if it had been under different circumstances. **

**The chest was filled with neatly folded socks. The smelled faintly of lavender. **

**"****What did you do to it?" Sebastian demanded. He had Quinn's notebook in his hand. "Is this some sort of trick?"**

**"****No - not by me at least. I told you - this might not be the treasure. It could be a diversion by the sect who hid it. They could've been banking on the person who found it opening it and not investigating the cave any further once they saw the gold. It could be anything."**

**Sebastian fumed silently for a moment. Then he called, "Tam, Wiggins, Sloane! Unhook the ship. Take it back to the cave and search where we found the box. Be back here by noontime so we can move." **

**Quinn wondered, briefly, why they didn't just take Santana's ship back. It made more sense to her, but maybe it was a ship loyalty...thing. **

**"****And you," Sebastian said, jerking her up by her arm again. "You'd better hope they find something." He tossed her next to Santana. They'd been untied, but that was no problem - there were three other pirates watching them, swords already drawn. Sebastian spoke to the guards. "You three will be on first watch. We'll get some sleep and switch at midnight."**

**The jungle behind them was buzzing with insects of all sorts. Hoots and howls came from the distant parts of the island. Quinn kept an eye on the guards. These weren't the sleepy type she'd hoped for - they barely blinked, they were so alert. She shifted closer to Santana and lay her head on her shoulder. She closed her eyes, but she wasn't sleeping. In her mind purple and green runes flashed as she chanted silently. If they got out of this, she was buying all of her former seminar students dinner….**

**"****Arg...hate this damned island. Gods damned weather all over the place," one of the pirates grunted. **

**Quinn still had her eyes closed, but she could feel the mist rising. She could hear the trees rustling, and could feel the vibration of the island itself. It was working…. **

**Strangled screams and moans began to come from the tents. **

**"****The hell was that?" one of the other guards asked. **

**"****Go check on boss," the first one ordered. He and the last guard moved closer to the prisoners. "Don't even think of -" **

**Something - a large, human-shaped something - came out of the bushes. It lurched towards them. **

**"****Run for the ship," Quinn whispered. "Now!" She lay back in the sand, concentrating. **

**"****Get them!" **

**"****What about that thing?" **

**"****Quinn!"**

**"****Go!" **

**"****Get off -!"**

**"****No!"**

**"****Sebasti - ack! Ack! ACK!"**

**Quinn felt the sand shift as the man fell. She could hear fighting, and prayed like hell that the three had managed to find a weapon -any weapon would do. **

**Their last guard tried swiping at one of the...things...but his sword went right through it. He fled. **

**The professor looked up and into the quite terrifying face of the sand zombie she'd summoned. "Hello, friend," she murmured. Looking to her left, she spotted Santana, Blaine and Matt fighting a few pirates who had hid on their ship. It looked like they were winning. She stumbled, weakened by all the magic she'd used that day, over to the chest. Her book lay next to it. The bodies of the other pirates were sprawled on the ground - half buried and with sand pouring out of their mouths. She fell to her knees beside the box and flipped to the last few pages of the book. She spoke the words she'd neglected on the ship, and allowed herself to slump against the chest for a moment. **

**It moved. And then it moved some more. **

**Through her rapidly dimming vision, she peeked down and saw hundreds of tiny legs. She smiled. "You don't mind, do you?"**

**The chest dipped, and allowed her to climb on top of it, before taking off at an alarming speed toward the Crimson Shadow. As it ran, Quinn used her last bit of strength to say, in the Old Jungle Tongue,**

**"****Thank you, my friends. Be at peace."**

**The mist lowered and faded. Any passing ship from above would have seen the sand glow an ethereal blue, and then fade to normal again. **

**On deck, Santana and the boys had subdued or killed the remaining pirates. They all jumped back in horror when they saw the chest running up the gangway, Quinn passed out draped over its lid. **

**"****What the hell?" Matt yelped. **

**The box sat patiently as Santana approached. She felt for a pulse on Quinn and breathed out, relieved. "I think it's all the magic. She'll be okay. Blaine, get us out of here."**

**"****What about that thing?" he asked. **

**"****It brought her here. We'll be fine. But we need to go before the rest get back."**

**"****What were those things?" Matt asked, gently lifting Quinn up. **

**"****I don't know. I'll take her. You help Blaine. Back home, before anything else happens."**

**"****Aye, aye, Captain," he said quietly with a tiny smile. **

**Santana carried Quinn down to her chambers and gently placed her onto the bed. She didn't understand what had happened and - **

**"****Ouch," she mumbled. She'd gone to step back and run into that damned chest. "Er...hi?"**

**It didn't move, and had no **discernible **face, but somehow still managed to look attentive. **

**"****Uh...stay with her, okay? Just in case we missed a few pirates lurking around here."**

**It moved to the corner and dutifully sat there next to the bed, perfectly still. Deceptively still. It almost looked like a normal box. **

**And somehow, Santana had the feeling that Quinn was safer left alone with it, than with a hundred of the King's Own Guard. She closed the door quietly and went back onto the deck to help Matt and Blaine. **


	6. The Adventure Ends?

Quinn opened her eyes, blinking in the warm sunlight that was filtering in from the window. She moved to sit up, struggling against the weight of the comforter, and jumped when she heard paper rustling to her right.

"The last known relics of Sapient Pearwood found by noted explorer, Santana Lopez," Lady Regina read, smoothing the newspaper again. "With the help of Doctor Quinn Fabray, linguistics professor at Aelux University, the chest was recovered and a long forgotten language rediscovered. Currently, Fabray is recovering in a private suite at the King's Hospital, after a run in with pirates who tried to steal the wonderful discovery. Well, well," Regina said, finally looking over at Quinn. "You managed to impress me even further. Not only did my niece and her friends come back with only minor injuries, you've helped clean up her image. Not once does the article mention her rumored pirate behavior. That's quite a feat. How are you feeling, love?"

"Uh...tired."

"I kept you in a magical sleep for a couple of days. The reporters were being a nuisance. You'll feel better after a hot meal," she added, standing to pull the bell rope by the door. "I shall leave you now. I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again very soon."

Before Quinn could ask what she'd meant by that, the lady had swept from the room. A moment later, a nurse came in with a breakfast tray, followed by Santana.

"Morning," Quinn said, smiling.

"Morning," Santana said, and you could hear the relief in her voice.

"I see you've made a friend." Quinn nodded to the chest and nibbled her pastry.

"It won't stop following me. I mean, it's dead useful, and it's friendly enough. But it goes everywhere with me."

"You can tell it to stay put. It will come when you call."

"But what -"

"Anything made of Sapient Pearwood will follow its master anywhere. I linked it to you because...well, it's your treasure. I just flipped the switch, so to speak. Anything you put it will be perfectly safe, and it's impervious to magic."

"Meaning?"

Quinn conjured a small fireball and chucked it at the chest.

It swallowed it, and then sat there looking smug.

"Er...right." Santana sat down on the bed next to Quinn. "I'm glad you're okay. Matt and Blaine say hi."

"Hi to them. I met your aunt again."

"Yes...she insisted."

"Why did she think she'd be seeing me again soon?'

**Santana smiled, and it was her knowing, self-satisfied smirk again. "Because King Brad just legitimized the four of us as the kingdom's first Royal Expedition Team. And we have another map." She pulled it out of her cloak pocket and passed it to Quinn. "So, Professor...feeling up to another trip?"**

_**Fin**_

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_**LbN: Hope you guys liked it! Thanks for all of your reviews and input.**_


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